Mayor Oh Se-hoon, Minister of Environment, and Superintendent of Education Sign MOU on 18th to Promote 'Eco School' Pilot Project
Three Agencies to Jointly Share Facility Construction and Operating Costs... Detailed Design and Groundbreaking Next Year, Completion Targeted for September 2024
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Metropolitan Government, together with the Ministry of Environment and the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, is jointly working to establish environmental education infrastructure to respond to the climate crisis era and prepare for a sustainable future.
According to Seoul on the 18th, an "Eco School," an environmental education hub facility where various experiences related to climate and environment will take place, will be created on the site of the former Gongjin Middle School in Gangseo-gu (site area 7,052㎡), which was closed in March last year due to a decrease in school-age children and has been left unused. It will be the first metropolitan-level environmental education facility in the Seoul area, with completion targeted for September 2024.
Accordingly, Mayor Oh Se-hoon will sign a memorandum of understanding for the pilot project of the Eco School with Minister of Environment Han Jeong-ae and Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon at the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education auditorium on the same day. The Eco School will be developed as an environmental education experience center and a space for education, culture, and relaxation where not only children and youth but all generations of Seoul citizens can learn about and experience the environment.
Inside the Eco School, educational facilities such as exhibition rooms and classrooms will be installed, and ecological environments such as mini greenhouses, vegetable gardens, forests, rice paddies and fields, and ponds will be created by utilizing the playground area and rooftop, allowing citizens and students to receive high-quality environmental education.
According to the agreement, the three institutions plan to remodel the existing Gongjin Middle School building into a zero-energy building, presenting a carbon-neutral model for school buildings. The facility construction project cost of 24.2 billion KRW and the operating budget will be shared by the three institutions. Seoul and the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education will establish the basic plan and detailed design and jointly operate the Eco School. They will develop educational programs through climate and environmental education research and provide education for students and citizens. The Ministry of Environment will support teaching aids and materials necessary for operating climate and environmental education programs.
The three institutions plan to complete the detailed design in the first half of next year, start construction in the second half, and complete it by September 2024. Seoul expects the Eco School, reborn from a school building that has lost its use due to closure into an education, culture, and relaxation space related to climate and environment, to establish itself as a central educational institution leading climate and environmental education for Seoul citizens.
Meanwhile, Seoul is promoting the establishment of an environmental education foundation for Seoul citizens through various projects. It has established the 3rd Comprehensive Environmental Education Plan for Seoul, a five-year plan starting this year. With a budget of 2 billion KRW, it is also promoting the construction of an environmental education portal, development and operation of carbon-neutral programs, and expansion of basic environmental education centers at the district level.
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